


Live and Let Learn

by Shakespearescrypt



Series: Tumblr Transformer Prompts [2]
Category: Transformers: Rescue Bots
Genre: Coming Out, Drabbles, Multi, Questioning, prompts, set in season 4
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-23
Updated: 2017-01-10
Packaged: 2018-08-24 03:01:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 4,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8354335
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shakespearescrypt/pseuds/Shakespearescrypt
Summary: Rescue Bots drabbles based on prompt requests from my Tumblr. They all focus on character growth and learning.





	1. Teenagers Scare the Scrap Out of Me

**Author's Note:**

> MCR related title is appropriate, yes ^u^

Cody was hiding in his headphones again. He’d been doing that often, and more frequently as of late. Heatwave was worried. Cody was usually such an upbeat, outgoing kid, but now he was just… Ah, there was a word for this. Heatwave racked his processor. Grumpy wasn’t right, neither was depressed. Irritable? Moody? Unbalanced?

           “Angsty!” Kade groaned. Heatwave started. When did he get here? He hadn’t even heard him come in. Maybe everyone was just losing it now.

           “He’s just so-ugh!” Kade stomped around, waved his hands in some vague “can you even believe this?” gesture, and planted himself firmly on Heatwave’s offered servo. He pouted as he was brought to optic-level, knowing that Heatwave was about to talk him out of the tantrum that was brewing.

           “What’s got you this time?” Heatwave asked. “And for Primus’ sake, try to use your inside voice.”

           “It’s Cody,” Kade said. “And his stupid teen angst! Ugh- it’s driving us all bonkers!” Heatwave shifted his hold on his partner, who was in danger of flinging himself right onto the concrete floor of the bunker. Teen angst? Was this _another_ bizarre earth thing?

           “Is _that_ what’s been going on?”

           Kade paused mid-rant. “Yeah, duh. Do giant alien robots not have hormones?”

           “Er… something like that.”

           “Well that’s what this is,” Kade huffed. “Graham could probably explain it better, but basically teenagers have crazy wacko hormones that make them impossible to deal with.”

           Heatwave smirked. “Like you?”

           “Hey,” Kade said, genuinely offended. “I am _not_ a teenager. I might not be the most chipper person, but at least _I_ don’t blow my eardrums out with punk rock and shut myself up in my room. I did my time.”

           “So, what you’re saying is, this will pass?” Heatwave asked. Well, that was a relief. He didn’t know if he could deal with Cody’s mood swings on top of Kade’s and Blades’.

           “Not soon enough,” grumbled Kade, running a hand over his face. Heatwave lowered him to the ground, despite the protests that he was “not done being salty about this yet!” He contacted the rest of the bots through his comm. and called for a team meeting.

           The garage was tense and quiet when Heatwave arrived. Boulder was fiddling with his brushes, but the canvas in front of him remained blank. Chase glanced over the edge of a mystery novel at Blades, who was fixing the open garage door with a not very menacing glare. Heatwave followed his optics. Cody was stomping down the driving way in a very Kade-esque storm-off, and Heatwave could hear faint grumbles as he went. For a moment, Heatwave considered going after him, but decided it would be better to let him cool off. There were things that needed explaining, after all.

           “Okay,” he said. “So, I know what’s wrong with Cody-“

           “He’s being a big jerk, that’s what’s wrong!” Blades threw his servos up and was immediately met with three stern looks. Huffing, he crossed his arms and curled into himself. “Well he is…” he grumbled.

           Rolling his optics, Heatwave motioned to Boulder. It was easy to tell when he had something to say, but he never actually spoke out of turn, just stood there looking eager and about to burst. Like now. That little ‘Ooh pick me! Pick me!’ shaky jig he did. Just like that.

           “Cody and Blades got into a bit of an argument,” Boulder explained. “We were just trying to figure out what’s been bugging him lately, but he got angry. Then Blades pressed him-“

           “I did not!”

           “You did,” Boulder’s tone was calm but even; as usual, he was trying his best to stay neutral about the situation, which Heatwave was grateful for. He could only take so many moody teenagers in one day.

           “Well, there’s no need to do any more pressing, at least for the time being,” he said. “I talked to Kade, and this is all totally normal for humans Cody’s age. It’s just his hormones.”

           “Are you sure Kade is such a reliable source?” Chase asked. He looked skeptic.

           Heatwave chuckled. “I’d say so. Apparently it’s called ‘teen angst’.” Boulder perked up. There was a pile of books he kept with his art supplies and he shuffled through it, pulling out an anatomy text.

           “I noticed Cody’s hormones were a bit wonky,” he said. “I tried talking to Doc about it, but he didn’t seem too happy with the subject. He must be having the same problems with Franky.” A sigh of relief passed around the room. Though Blades still looked peeved, his posture slumped in relaxation and he uncrossed him arms. He had been just as worried about Cody as the rest of them; he couldn’t hide that.

           The meeting was just about to be unceremoniously adjourned when the Chief came in, tugging along brooding, grumpy Cody. If Heatwave tilted his helm just right, he could see brown eyes hidden under a fluff of blond hair. They were glassy and held a bit of shame, and Heatwave really _really_ hoped he wasn’t going to cry. Because wouldn’t that just make everyone a gooey emotional mess? And over what? Weird human chemical reaction whatnot?

           Ugh, FEELINGS.

           “I believe you have something to say, young man,” ordered the Chief. He guided Cody forward, urging him to tilt his head up. Cody stared at Blades, clenched his fists, looked everywhere except Blades, and right when Heatwave was sure he was going to peel right out he spoke.

           “…I’m sorry,” he muttered. “For yelling at you… and pretty much being a jerk…” He instantly retreated, but Blades was too quick and he was scooped up and cuddled.

           “It’s okay!” Blades cried out. “I _forgive_ you! I know it’s just your silly human hormones and you’re not really a jerk and let’s not be mad at each other because I don’t like being mad or when you’re mad and thenifwe’remadateachotherwhowouldwatchcupcakehorderswithme-“

           Heatwave plucked up Cody and set him on the ground, shooting Blades a disapproving look. Not that the helibot cared, he was still rambling on about cupcakes and forgiveness and what have you. He smiled at Cody, who rubbed his arms, looking all kinds of embarrassed and uncomfortable, before returning the gesture. Glancing over to Chief, who was stumbling through a conversation about human adolescents with Boulder, he was suddenly struck with pity. That poor man had to go through this same thing with _three other children._ Just Cody was proving to be a challenge to Heatwave, and he assumed he was a more mild case to begin with. He was suddenly very grateful to have his team during this “teen angst”. He was glad that Cody had them too.

           Because dealing with human teenagers was one thing; he couldn’t imagine being one.


	2. Untitled

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This one kind of ties into RID 2015. Friendly reminder that, while I did write these stories, the ideas for them were all sent to me! Check out my tumblr to see the asks http://citrusfruitcyborg.tumblr.com/

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I kinda played off the IDW comics for the Cybertronian caste system and how the war began, but it should still fit into the aligned continuity

Over time, Blades decided he liked Bumblebee’s voice. It was soothing and sweet, and he often lost track of what Bee was saying and just drifted in the sound. Like today, Bumblebee was visiting Griffon Rock ~~to hang out~~ for a routine check-in and Blades was dozing to the sound of the now one-sided conversation.

“…weird minicons, and there’s still the issue of Cybertron pretty much hating Optimus-“

Blades jumped. “Wait, what?”

“Yeah,” Bee hummed tiredly. “A lot of Cybertronians blame Optimus for the war. Some are doing their best to erase his legacy completely.”

As he dragged a servo over his face, Blades noticed scratches on his paint and strain on his neck cables. He looked…exhausted. Tentatively, he patted Bee’s shoulder.

“Hey,” he said. “How about you go recharge on my berth for a while? I’ll record Cupcake Wars for us.”

Hefting himself of the couch as if weighed down, Bee gave him a grateful smile. Blades watched him round the corner before shooting off to find Heatwave.

“Wait, what?!”

“I know right, that’s what I said!” Blades shook Heatwave’s arm. “Can you believe that? _Megatron_ started the war!”

“Technically,” Chase interjected. “Megatron started the _rebellion-”_

“Which started the war,” growled Heatwave, his plating warming up and quivering, and Blades backed up. Maybe he should’ve just kept his mouth shut, he thought. Chase had set his book down and now gazed levelly at Heatwave. It was odd, since Chase was never mad, but Blades could’ve sworn he saw a glint of anger in his optics. He spoke as if he hadn’t been interrupted.

“The rebellion against the senate, which was corrupt,” he said. “They would not listen to his peaceful protests. The war only truly began when the senate fought back.”

“That’s exactly the same thing as him starting it!”

“Um, guys…” whimpered Blades. Inside he was chanting ‘please don’t fight, please don’t fight!’ Slowly, Heatwave advanced on Chase, rage rolling off his EM field in boiling, salty ocean waves.

“And don’t forget, Optimus was fighting the Functionists, too! He wanted what Megatron did!”

The two were almost chest to chest now. Chase didn’t flinch. “Then why did he turn against him?”

Tension popped and crackled in the air like a forest fire. For a few long, agonizing moments, no one moved. No one spoke. Desperately, Blades wished he could collapse in on himself and just _hide._ He should never have brought this up; he should’ve _known_ something like this would happen. Now Chase and Heatwave were angry at each other and it was all his fault.

“Alright, that’s enough,” Boulder said gently, and Blades was forever grateful to have him on his team. “The fact of the matter is we don’t know what exactly happened. We were in stasis by the time the war started.” He nudged Heatwave and Chase apart. Chase stepped back with a small nod, but when Boulder tried to lay a servo on Heatwave’s shoulder he whirled around and began to pace.

“No we don’t!” he screeched; his voice didn’t sound like his own. “We don’t know _anything_ about the war and we couldn’t _fight_ in the war because- because-“

“Because why, Heatwave?” Chase’s voice was soft, but there was an undertone of a challenge.

“Because… because…” Oh no, this was not okay, Heatwave was faltering. Blades had half a mind to just cut both of them off. This was _not going to end well…_

“Why? Why would Optimus not let you fight on his team, Heatwave?”

“Because I’m a _RESCUE BOT!”_

It was faint, very faint, but Blades could feel just a smidgen of satisfaction in Chase’s field. Satisfaction and bitterness. The police bot nodded.

“We were not built for fighting,” he said oh so softly. He turned to leave, but bumped right into-

“Bumblebee!” Blades squeaked. “Did we wake you? I’m sorry. You…y-you didn’t hear all that, did you?” Primus, he hoped not. It was so embarrassing, and besides that Bee didn’t need even _more_ stress piled on him. He shakily reached for him to lead him back to the TV room, but Bee just took his servo and smiled in melancholy way.

“It’s alright, Blades,” he murmured. Then to the rest of the team he said, “Look guys, as you know the past isn’t… black and white. We all fought for what we believed was right, and we all paid the price. But… we kept things from you, and that’s not right. You don’t deserve to be in the dark.”

“So, you’re going to explain things to us?” asked Heatwave, optics misty and hopeful. Bee squeezed his shoulder.

“As best as I can.”


	3. Being Green

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frankie has some trouble dealing with jealousy. This one super short.

“Hey Frankie.”

           “Hey Jane,” Frankie said, preoccupied. She was busy trying to wrap her head around a college-level anatomy book. It wasn’t the type of science she was usually interested in, but her dad said it was never too late to learn something new. “What’s up?”

           Jane flopped down next to her to tie her sneakers. Frankie followed her movements, testing herself on which muscles were at work.

           “I’m heading to the skate park with Cody,” Jane hummed. “He’s really good on his hover board.”

           “Yeah, he is,” Frankie smiled.

           “And he’s cute too.”

           Frankie’s head snapped up. _‘Yeah, he is.’_ Slowly, she laid her book down and turned to her friend.

           “Do you… like him?” she asked. Jane blushed and giggled.

           “Yeahhh, I think so… Do you think I should tell him?”

           Frankie wasn’t too sure about how she felt about Cody herself. Ever since they were little they were best friends, but now that they were growing up… Maybe she did like him in that way. Was she supposed to? Maybe, she mused, it was all just jealousy. If Cody had a girlfriend then they wouldn’t spend as much time together, and he was already busy with the rescue team, and her with studies. And Frankie had known him longer, too. Jane barely knew him; it wasn’t fair for her to just show up and-

           Jane looked at her hopefully. Frankie took a deep breath, bit her lip, and gnashed her teeth.

           “I… don’t think he’s looking for a relationship right now…”

           “Oh, okay…” Jane looked deflated. “Thanks for the advice.”

           “Mmm-hmm,” Frankie pretended to go back to her book. As she heard Jane’s skateboard roll away, she sighed. Her stomach was already beginning to feel hot with guilt. But…

           If it was never too late to learn something new, she could learn to be less selfish later.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Frankie is one of my favorite characters :)


	4. The Ins and Outs of Coming Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cody struggles with his sexuality. Thankfully, Dani is a darn good sister.

            Being a kid was hard. Of course, Cody knew every kid said that, but that’s because it was true. Being constantly asked what he wanted to be while being told what he should be gave Cody little time to actually focus on who he _was_.

            The Valentine’s Day dance was soon. Cody stared at the sugar-pink poster with a churning sense of dread.

            ‘Valentine’s dance this Friday!’ it read. ‘Feel the love! Tickets available in room 409.’ Little baby blue and pink hearts were cheerfully paired together around the bubble letters. An ungodly amount of glitter covered the poster. How was that much glitter even legal? Cody would have to talk to Chase about the laws of arts and crafts because there was no way-

            Someone clapped his shoulder. “Hey, Cody.”

He jolted and swallowed a squeal.

            “Hey Mark,” he peeped. Mark was a new kid in Griffon Rock. He was outgoing and pretty nice, and had taken in interested in Cody, as he wanted to be a fire fighter one day. They’d become fast friends and they were both study buddies with Frankie (though Frankie mostly tutored them in algebra).

            “You thinking about asking Frankie to the dance?” Mark asked, hand still firm on Cody’s shoulder. He shrugged and scuffed the floor with his shoe.

            “Maybe,” he mumbled. “Everyone expects me to…”

            “Oh”, Mark said, suddenly seeming a bit uncomfortable. “Well, uh, I hope you figure it out, then.”

            The bell rang, but instead of class, Cody headed to the office.

            Chief was busy, so Dani picked him up. He could tell from the moment she came in that she wasn’t fooled. Still, she tenderly brushed the hair from his face and pressed her lips to his forehead as if to check for fever.

            “Yeah,” she said. I better take him home.” She didn’t say anything on the way home. Blades chattered away, but neither of them really listened.

            Back at the firehouse, Dani set down a glass of milk and a peanut butter sandwich in front of him. Comfort food. She sat down across from him at the table.

            “Cody, what’s wrong?” she asked. “You never call for check out. And I know you aren’t sick.”

            As Dani waited for his answer the room turned to static. Cody’s insides turned numb. Shrugging, he unwound the crust from his sandwich. It crumbled and he pinched it into a dough ball. Finally, he spoke, but it didn’t feel like he was saying anything.

            “I’m supposed to… b-but I don’t…”

            Dani took his hand, melting some of the feeling back into it.

            “Don’t what?” she asked patiently. Squeezing her fingers, Cody willed himself to swallow. Dani was his sister; she wouldn’t judge him. She wouldn’t abandon him. She loved him, and he loved her.

            “…Like girls,” he whispered at last. Dani nodded.

             “Do you like boys?”

            “I dunno… b-but I’m supposed to-!” Suddenly, Dani tugged him into her arms.

            “Cody,” she cooed. “There’s no ‘supposed to’ with this kind of stuff! You can like boys, or girls, or neither, or both!”

            “Really?” Cody sniffled.

            “Of course!” she said. “I mean, I like boys _and_ girls.” Briefly, Cody’s eyes widened, and Dani giggled and handed him his snack.

            “C’mon little bro,” she grinned. “Let’s go eat in the family room. We can watch cartoons until dad gets home.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, I'm a sucker for the big sister little brother fluff.


	5. Bots, Bonds, and Betrothal Pt. 1- Chase’s Log

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chase tells his journal about his plans to propose to Charlie. Oh boy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was something I submitted to http://rb-cop-husbands.tumblr.com/ It's a super cute blog ^u^

Dear Journal,

It isn’t my place to question the orders of a Prime- nor is it my _personality_ \- but, perhaps, Optimus wasn’t entirely aware of what all entailed “learning and abiding by human customs” when he gave the team our assignment. If he was, he surely would’ve mentioned a few exceptions. Surely, I’m not required to-

The bouquet is on my desk. By persuasion of Boulder, it was placed in a vase of water, though it is already starting to wilt. The bouquet haunts me, Journal. It reminds of what an absolute quandary I’ve managed to get myself into. The day had started out so promising, too.

Today was the wedding of Anna Baranova and Professor Green. Given the amount of trouble the Professor has proven to attract to himself, the team and I were expected to attend. Of course, that was the excuse Chief had made for us. In all honesty we were just as excited for the festivities (barring Heatwave), and Chief saw fit that we should be invited.

Now, a journal is a place for honesty and secrecy. Therefore, I entrust these secrets to you, Journal. First, may it be stated that Chief Charlie Burns looks _dashing_ in a tuxedo. Second, the wedding was all-in-all boring and I couldn’t bring myself to pay attention the majority of the time; and that is what all led to this predicament. Had I been alert, I would’ve have noticed the shift in activity and the group of young women gathering near my pedes. Apparently, it is tradition for the bride the toss her bouquet at the end of her wedding. The “lucky girl,” as Dani put it, which caught it is the next to marry.

I didn’t mean to catch the bouquet, Journal. I truly did not. It turns out the Professor has exceptional arm strength, and threw the floral arrangement hard enough to hit my helm. Instinctively, I reacted (Blades said I “spazzed out.” I did not) and somehow it ended up in my servo.

And that, Dear Journal, is how I came to be in this seasoned cucumber. I have to get married, Journal. There is no way around it. I must adhere to earth’s traditions and fulfill my duties.

I am going to ask Chief to marry me. Unfortunately, I could not find a diamond, and am unable to purchase a ring. When I brought this concern to Kade, he suggested that I buy Chief a drink before I propose. I cannot buy a drink, per se, but I did brew his favorite blend of coffee. I sincerely hope that will suffice. I will update soon, hopefully with positive results.

Signing off,

Chase of Rescue Force Sigma 17


	6. Bots, Bonds, and Betrothal Pt. 2- Charlie's Letter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Charlie writes his brother about a very strange day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi it's the middle of the night and I had one awful day SO this is getting uploaded now. I would've waited until my submission went through RB Cop Husband's tumblr but... like I said, awful day. I needed to do something that felt productive. Hope you enjoy, sweeties ^u^

Dear Woody,

            How are you? I hope you are doing well. Rescue work is going well- or, just as well as you’d expect Rescue work to go. The kids are fine and they send their love.

            Woody, I would really like to tell you this in person (or at least over the phone. Why would a wild boar steal your mobile device?) but I think even face-to-face I wouldn’t be able to describe today’s events. It was all very… odd, to say the least.

            Just this morning, Anna and Ezra had their wedding and Chase caught Anna’s bouquet. Just keep that in mind. It’ll come into play later.

            It was after supper and I was helping Cody with his homework when the most nauseating smell came from the kitchen. Remember when we used to pull all-nighters in college and to stay up we made all sorts of coffee-energy drink monstrosities? It smelled like that. So I told Cody to go play outside while I checked it out; I was honestly afraid it might have been some toxic gas or something.

            It turns out Chase was making coffee. He saw me, smiled, and carefully poured me a mug-full. He looked at me expectantly. He was so proud of himself. It was actually kind of cute, to be honest. Figuring it couldn’t be that bad, I took a sip.

            Woodrow, it tasted like charcoal and the tears of modern-day businessmen.

            But I didn’t tell him that. I just smiled and thanked him, and asked what the special occasion was. And this is when it gets weird(er). Chase got down on one knee. He took my hand- gently, soft, like cupping a firefly in the summer- and presented me with the bouquet from that morning. Then he asked me to marry him.

            Have you ever inhaled steaming hot coffee?

            I sputtered for a good two minutes. Chase was very helpful; he covered me in napkins and rubbed my back while I hacked up a lung, my small intestines, and both kidneys. Once I was through dying I’d had some time to think about how to respond. This is what I said:

            “This is all so… sudden.” It was a stupid thing to say. I can hear you laughing somewhere in the jungle. Yes, I am aware I probably sounded like a teenage girl. Shut up.

            Turns out Chase agreed that, yes, it was very sudden. He apologized and stuttered, explaining that he’d caught Anna’s bouquet and so he _had_ to get married, and that he would really rather take things slow in a relationship but he was duty-bound to follow Earth’s traditions. It was part of his mission assigned by Optimus Prime. He told me if he had to marry someone he wanted it to be me. Then he futilely tried to explain the concept of “Conjux Endura”. I couldn’t wrap my head around it, but it involves a lot of steps and... some kind of soul-bonding, I think? Alien traditions are strange.

            I started laughing. I couldn’t help it; of all the things to misunderstand, it had to be this. Chase gave me a look like a kicked puppy and I realized he must have thought I was rejecting him. Quickly, I reassured him that I wasn’t laughing at him, just at the weirdness of the situation. When I broke the news to him several emotions passed on his face. Shock, frustration, relief, and… I swear, disappointment. I’ve never seen Chase so expressive.

            “Oh,” was all he said. In a second he was back to neutral self.

            Honestly, Woody, I was kind of disappointed too. Chase has been my best friend for years. We’ve grown so close, almost closer than any two people have ever been I think. Almost as close as Mary and I.

            Maybe you think I’m just lonely- maybe I am- but I asked Chase to tell me more about Cybertronian courting rituals. I can’t say I caught on all that well, but that’s alright because Chase promised to help me learn.

            And the best learning is done by doing ;) (that is a “winky face”. You have to turn your head to tell, but it means that I’m winking at you. I’ve seen the kids do it.)

            So that’s the story of how I started dating an alien robot. I think I can safely say that I’ve out-weirded you. Unless you think you can beat that, brother.

All My Love,

            Charlie


	7. Congratulations!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Someone requested Heatwave/Chase being caught in a relationship. I figured I'd go ahead and put it up here, even though it's sloppy rn and in need of editing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> when i'm tired so are my robots... sorry this is ridiculously short

Chase could tell when Heatwave needed recharge because of how clingy he got. Usually neither of them was much for physical contact. They had their fields, and they preferred to use those as it was a more private, intimate form of affection.

            Now, with Heatwave hugging him from behind, Chase wondered _why_ exactly he was like this. He’d have to ask him when he was a bit more… present. Right now he had to get Heatwave into berth. To _rest_ of course. He willed his processor not to stray as Heatwave nuzzled the soft cables on his neck.

            “Heatwave,” said Chase softly, reaching back to cup his cheek. “When was the last time you recharged?”

            “Mmmrrpphh,” Heatwave replied. With a sigh, Chase turned in his arms.

            “That is hardly an answer,” he said. “Come on, I’ll escort you to your recharge station.”  He tugged him along towards the berth room, supporting most of Heatwave’s weight as he stumbled. He was not a light bot. Finally, he was able to heave him onto a recharge slab and hook up the cables. Optics dim, Heatwave tugged Chase’s face close to his.

            “Very well,” murmured Chase, brushing their lip plates together. “But now you must really rest.”

            Heatwave didn’t hear him, already out like a light. Amused, Chase tip-toed out the door- just in time to barely catch a flash of purple round the corner. He blinked. Was it his imagination? It must have been, because when he checked there was no one there.

* * *

 

            Later, Heatwave returned to the garage and strode up to Chase. He seemed grumpy and Chase wondered why; had he not gotten sufficient recharge? Before he could question him Heatwave handed over a crumpled piece of poster board, signed by the entire rescue team. ‘Congratulations!’ it read. In the corner was a crude drawing of Blurr winking. Chase huffed in amusement.

            “We should send them thank-you cards,” he said. Heatwave rolled his eyes, but let the irritation ebb form his field at Chase’s insistence. The team meant no ill will. He knew that.

            “It’s… good that they know,” he conceded at last. “They’re out team.”


End file.
